Recorded at KOKA Studios, Vienna, AT
Recorded by Andreas Wingert
Mastered by John Whynot, USA

'*Businessmen*' – the long-awaited seventh CrossCut album featuring the Hildesheim, Germany based group, will finally be released on June 20, 2014.
Later this year, the blues and soul quintet will celebrate its 25th stage anniversary.

'*Businessmen*' perfectly reflects the history and artistic growth of Europe's leading blues force, performing a marvelous set of originals in sparkling form, excellent and convincing.
Like its predecessor, 'Come Along;, '*Businessmen*' was recorded under the supervision of Andreas Wingert at Koka Studios in Vienna, Austria. With the exception of “It Was A Dream”, a John Brim Chicago blues classic, all songs were written by Andreas and Michael, the Arlt brothers and founding members of the band.

With confidence, competence, and power B.B. & The Blues Shacks are presenting themselves as a straight blues band with some soul notes, showing their enthusiasm and their attention to detail. More than any of their previous studio recordings, '*Businessmen*' reflects the fascination and energy of their 3,000 plus live performances on international stages on all five continents.

Blues with a capital “B” might be a suitable headline of this production. Drummer Jochen Reich is the band's latest addition. Along with long-time member Henning Hauerken on upright bass and bass guitar he represents the rhythmic force and powerful backbone, delivering new grooves and steady rhythms, providing the playground for soloists such as keyboardist Dennis Koeckstadt and guitarist Andreas Arlt. Fans of Michael Arlt's exquisite art of harmonica playing will enjoy this set. He's playing his heart out!

The No Show No Blow Horns deliver that certain something, razor-sharp and accurately arranged horn parts and solos at the highest level – almost an integral part of the musical concept of B.B. & The Blues Shacks.

'Businessmen' – anything but 'business as usual'.
Mellow, fat, and rich sounding blues at its very best!

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Reviews CCD 11108 B.B. & THEBLUESSHACKS Businessmen

As times change and people evolve so has their music; now, with the added dimension and depth of a soulful horn section known as; The No Blow No Show Horns. They also employ a harder edged sixties English approach to their blues. (…) Michael Arlt who provides forceful lead vocals comes across as a mixture of Dave Edmunds and Richie Milton, his harmonica blasting is very reminiscent of Little Walter's contentious and aggressive blasting and as easy going and relaxed as Slim Harpo, while Andreas Arlt 's Crisply swinging and extremely riveting, note bending twanging guitar work evokes vivid images of Jimmy Vaughan. (…) Highly Recommended!

BB & The Blueshacks celebrate their 25th stage anniversary with their seventh Crosscut album and their finest and bluesiest recording to date. (…) Michael Arlt is Europe’s answer to John Nemeth, possessing a deeply soulful voice and a deep blues harmonica style that is the perfect complement to Andreas’s virtuoso fretwork. (…) Great stuff!

(…) keeping the authentic electric Blues sound very much alive. Throughout the disc you’re aware that you’ve heard the tune somewhere before and as with ‘Gimme This, Gimme That’ you find yourself thinking it’s a remake – in this case of something by Little Walter, since Michael Arlt’s harp solo is so on the ball in it’s harsh, honking, Walter sound. (…) A disc to put on in the car on a long journey – maybe on the way to a live gig. If that gig itself was by BB and the Blues Shacks it would be worth a long drive to get to and you’d be sure of some jiving good time music to stretch those stiff traveling joints when you danced later.

'Businessmen' is well up to the band’s usual high standard and was recorded in Vienna towards the end of last year, with the 15 tracks featuring all originals, bar one cover … and as ever comprising of a broad span from roadhouse blues, soulful struts, and some funky edges and more… all making for a most enjoyable ‘journey’. (…) As previously noted B.B. & The Blues Shacks continue to one of the finest outfits in Europe and needless to say 'Businessmen' has class written all over it, and comes highly recommended.

This is a band that means business as they deliver blues that has been shaken but not stirred with a splash of soul and a good measure of rock n roll producing up beat tempo that gets your feet tapping. (…) The album of fifteen tracks has one cover, the original material all though has a familiar vibe that is definitely sit back, relax and chill music, there is nothing to confuse, challenge or really sit up and listen. That said it is an album which is satisfying to the ear and has a real feel-good ambiance. Closing with “Goodbye Everybody” is a fitting finale to a classy outfit that we will want to hear again very soon. Bluesdoodles gives this CD SEVEN doodle paws out of TEN ….

A very nice job it is too, on 15 originals, including one corking instrumental “Buckle Up” (…)
A mix of groove-laden Chicago blues, horn-soaked Memphis Stax/Atlantic soul vibes. (…) Some of this stuff swings like a mother and you can hear the jazz influences seeping deep into the material and playing too.

A fantastic follow-up to 'Come Along' (…). In fifteen songs, fourteen originals and one cover, they prove once again that they’re the ‘CEO’s’ -Crowd Excitement Officers – of big-band blues and blues rock. (…) In the last two years, B.B. and the Blues Shacks have demonstrated that they’re superb artists and craftsmen all at once – in short, keen “Businessmen”!

Wow! B.B. and his German compatriots always impress – this is their seventh album for Crosscut and I've yet to hear a track I don't like – and they blast in Stax mode here for 'Out Of Tears' before easing into a lovely lazy shuffle with 'Gimme This, Gimme That' – parping horns again and broken up with a fine blues harp solo from leader Michael Arlt, as good as anything this side of California these days (he doesn't overplay!). (…) These guys have done it again…